The Great Courses: The World of Biblical Israel

We all have associations with the word “Israel”—a modern-day nation in the Middle East that makes up part of the biblical Holy Land. But how did ancient Israel emerge? Who were the Israelites and where did they come from? What was it like to live in biblical Israel? Before unpacking these questions, it might help to consider how the very meaning of the word “Israel” evolved throughout the Hebrew Bible:- “Israel” first referred to a person, Jacob, the founding ancestor of the Israelites.Jacob had twelve sons whose descendants became the “twelve tribes of Israel.”- Later, “Israel” became the name of the monarchy headed by King David and his son Solomon.- When the monarchy divided, the northern kingdom was called “Israel” and the southern kingdom, “Judah.”- Finally, “Israel” came to refer to the Judeans who survived as a nation in exile during the Babylonian captivity.

24 Lectures:1 Biblical Israel—The Story of a People2 By the Rivers of Babylon—Exile3 Ancestor Narratives in Genesis4 Moses—The Torah’s Central Hero5 Becoming the Nation of Israel6 Kinship and Economics in Highland Villages7 Three Weddings and a Funeral8 Political Power Bases in Early Israel9 Kingdoms and King Making10 Politics and Economy of a Centralized Cult11 Worshipping Locally12 Lives of the Rich, Lives of the Poor13 Assyrian Incursion into Israel and Judah14 Life under Siege15 Religious Debates and Preserved Text16 Ezekiel—Exilic Informant17 Life in Exile, Life in Judah18 Literacy and Education19 Religious Developments of the Exile20 The New Israel—Resettling the Land21 Food and the Family Meal—Boundaries22 National Identity—Intermarriage23 National Identity—Twins and Enemies24 Loss and Restoration—Two Biblical Stories

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